Taking Chances
by ravenclawdancer4999
Summary: Specs had firmly decided to skip the masked ball, that is, until discovers a letter written to her by her late grandmother, who urges her to be brave. Will she find that maybe taking chances, isn't so bad?
1. The Letter

**Disclaimer: Starship and it's characters belong to Team Starkid; If I owned Starship, the Spayonder moments wouldn't have been cut from the Youtube recording... But don't forget to review, enjoy!**

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"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU'RE NOT GOING?" February yelped, looking scandalized, "YOU HAVE TO GO!"

"I just explained this to you, February," Specs sighed, "I don't wish to make a fool of myself. Haven't you noticed that social gatherings such as this are not my forte and should be left to you? Girls like me simply do not belong at fancy parties."

"But, it's a masked ball for the G.L.E.E! Everyone is going to be there!" the blonde whined, "No one would even know it was you if you wore a mask. It's a chance for you to meet your Prince Charming; then he'll fall madly in love with you without judging! If you would just let me-"

"I'm not attending and that decision is final," Specs stopped her, closing the novel she was reading. Her mind was made up, the closest she would ever come to a fairy tale ending were the ones she read about in books. Besides, Specs already knew in her heart there was only one person for her, but he would never know. She got up from the table and quickly left the mess hall before February could say another word.

The girl wandered back to her room, in an attempt to find some peace. Once Specs reentered her quarters, her eyes flicked over to the desk, where she left a small mechanism unfinished. Naturally, she was inclined to finish her project before she did anything else and sat down in the chair, beginning to fiddle with the various gears. If programmed correctly, her surveillance agent would be capable of recognizing a human presence and warn it's technician in time for her to escape.

After tinkering with the machine for almost an hour, Specs finally discovered what had been blocking it's reception. She reached into the drawer for her screwdriver, but came back empty-handed.

"Damnit," she muttered, "Tootsie must have taken it again, even after I specifically told him to _never_ loosen the screws on his zapper. One of these days he's going to blow himself all the way to the moons of Enivder." Specs threw open the doors of her closet and began to rummage through large boxes of spare parts and extra tools in an attempt to find a screwdriver. A few minutes passed before her gaze landed on a wooden chest, hiding behind several empty tool boxes.

It may have looked like any other old chest, but to Specs, it was much more than that. It had belonged to her grandmother, Rose Albain. Specs had always looked up to her, even as a little girl; Grandma Rose had been intelligent, confident, rebellious, compassionate, and daring. When she was only eighteen, she went against her family's wishes to marry. She had joined the Galactic League of Extraterrestrial Exploration to traverse the galaxy and avoid being tied down. Whenever Specs was mad or upset, she always knew exactly who she could talk to. Her grandmother had always understood her in a way that her mom, dad, and sisters never could. Specs wanted to be free to make her own choices and gain her own merits, only Grandma Rose approved and understood that. The day news came of her grandmother's death came a few weeks after Specs enlisted, her heart felt like it had been broken in two. However, when Rose had passed away, she left the wooden chest and all it's contents to Specs. Gingerly, Specs used both hands to lift the box and set it down on her bed.

As smart as Specs was, she had never found a way to open the chest. She traced the initials that had been carved into the wood, RA; Rose Albain. Specs' touch fell to the tiny keyhole, her brain trying to solve the puzzle. Instinctively, her hand went to her throat, fingering the other memento left to by Rose on Specs' 21st birthday, a gold chain hung with a_ key. _Cursing herself for not realizing it sooner, she scrambled to unfasten the clasp around her neck and insert the small key into the lock. It gave a telltale click, allowing Specs to gently lift the lid.

Inside the box, she found photos, dog tags, medals, an old uniform, even a disguise or two. All memorabilia from when her grandmother had been a part of the G.L.E.E so many years ago. Specs read the inscription on some of the medals, most had been given for bravery in combat but others were given for breakthrough engineering designs. Specs couldn't help but smile at this; thank dead god she had inherited her grandmother's intelligence. Next, she pulled out the vintage uniform, along with the set of dog tags. However, her strangest discovery had been lodged underneath the silver vest; a blonde wig almost the exact color and cut of February's hair.

Curious, she pulled a photo out of the very bottom of the box that had four women with their arms wrapped around each other. The women on the farthest left was built the same way as Taz, but was somehow much less intimidating, with light brown hair instead of jet black. The next was slightly taller, with piercing blue eyes that seemed to almost sparkle. The third woman's hair fell to her shoulders in dark curls and a wide smile spread across her face. Then, Specs recognized her grandmother, her eyes dancing happily from underneath the same blonde wig Specs had found seconds before. Even from underneath the wig, it was obvious that her grandmother was beautiful, with skin that glowed and eyes that looked almost gold. People had always said Specs was the spitting image of Grandma Rose, she could never see it. Flipping the photo over, she read the small caption on the back.

_"Lauren, Jaime, Meredith, and Rose. Undercover operations team for the GLEE." _Specs sighed and thought of her own team; a country hick,a previously murderous robot, a commander who was all heart, an angry Hispanic, a sometimes unstable private, a ditzy blonde, and well, her. As strange a combination as it was, it worked somehow.

Suddenly, a green envelope caught Specs' eye from the corner of the chest. In her grandmother's neat scrawl it read, '_To Julia Marie, my loving granddaughter._" Specs felt her chest tighten, but slowly slid her finger underneath the seal and pulled out a sheet of matching green paper. Swallowing hard, she began to read the letter slowly, not wanting to miss a single word.

"_My darling Julia, my wonderful, brave girl. As I write this letter, I've received word that you are going to be joining the Galactic League of Extraterrestrial Exploration in a few short months. Knowing that I will most likely be gone by the time you ship out, I wanted to let you know just how much I believe in you. It would be safe to say that your mother isn't exactly pleased with your decision and blames me for filling your head with 'unattainable dreams and nonsense.' Usually I wouldn't try to correct your mother, but there is no such thing as an unattainable dream. Nothing will ever be impossible, no where is too far to go when you are following your heart._

_I hope, in the deepest part of me that you will find the friendship, love, and happiness that I did while traveling the galaxy. Just remember that whatever may happen, you are intelligent, warm, trustworthy, loyal, and compassionate. Nothing can take that away from you. I also wish that you can find courage and learn to be brave the way I did. Know that I don't fear my death, because I know there's something greater in store. The brave may not live forever, but the cautious never live at all. It's okay to be afraid, it's only human, but never let it stand in your way. Life is all about taking a leap of faith and never looking back, wondering what you would have or could have done differently. Take chances and make your own mistakes. I love you, Julia, and I know you'll make me proud, no matter what. Love always, Grandma Rose._

Specs swallowed hard as a single, sparkling tear trickled down her cheek. She would never be as brave as Rose, she couldn't even tell the guy she liked how she really felt. Even going to a party where she might actually be given attention scared her, she was hopelessly afraid. She _had _let fear stand in her way, she _had _let it hold her back.

_"I have to prove that I can be brave, for her," _Specs swallowed, a feeling of determination rising inside of her,_"If grandma believed I could do it, I have to at least try. But I already told February I wouldn't be attending, and dead god knows how much she would gloat if she found out..."_ Another characteristic to be noted about Specs, she had inherited Rose's will and was dead god damn stubborn. The engineer had already made it clear she didn't want to go, how would it look if she broke down and went? While turning this concept over in her mind, Specs' eyes wandered back to the wooden chest and she spotted the blonde wig sitting in a crumpled heap at the bottom. An idea struck her, a plan that was so illogical it just might work. She would go to ball incognito, wearing both the mask and the blonde wig to conceal her own features. However, Specs would have to sneak into February's dorm to borrow articles of clothing to wear. The only concern was how could she get in and out of the blonde's room without being seen? Her gaze falling on to the surveillance agent, a hint of a smile crept across her face.


	2. A Plan Gone Wrong

"_Of course," _Specs thought, _"I can enter her dorm at 1700 hours while she is showering down the hall; it always takes her half an hour or more and she sings so loudly she won't even hear me. With the added security of my invention, there is little to no chance of error."_

Highly pleased with herself, Specs set an alarm for 1655 hours and took up her novel once more. Almost three hours later, her spectrometer gave one small beep before Specs quickly silenced it while grabbing her surveillance agent off the table. Peeking her head out into the corridor, she didn't see a soul and decided it was empty enough to leave her dorm. She quickly tiptoed down the hall and stopped dead outside the showers. Specs heard a sugary sweet hum coming from within, followed by the sound of a soprano voice.

Continuing down the hall, the girl halted in front of February's door. Specs carefully placed the surveillance bot on the floor and turned her attention to the keypad outside of the air-locked door. Only pausing long enough to listen for any footsteps, she quickly took a guess at the pass-code; 1,2,3, 4. The door slid open easily and silently.

"_February needs to reprogram her passcode," _Specs thought, _"She makes it far too easy for people to sneak into her quarters. Now, where is her closet?" _The engineer's eyes quickly flickered to the back wall where a door hung ajar. Taking one last listen for any footsteps, Specs approached the closet and cautiously pulled open the door.

Pink and purple clothing of every kind was stuffed inside the tiny closet, threatening to explode at any moment. Off to the side, Specs could see February's blue schience officer uniforms hidden behind a short, magenta sundress. Along the bottom, there were at least forty pairs of shoes lining the floor.

"How can she find anything in here?" Specs murmured, gingerly touching a pair of pale pink shorts. She began to flick through the enormous closet, attempting to find something usable.

Meanwhile, in the girl's shower, February realized that she had completely forgotten her leave-in conditioner. Carefully wrapping a fluffy robe around herself, she set off back down the corridor to retrieve it. Unexpectedly, the blonde came across Tootsie, standing dumbfounded in the middle of the hall. As natural as this behavior was, February paused.

"What is it, Tootsie?" she asked curiously, looking up at the simple farm boy. He returned February's gaze before he a gave a pathetic little moan.

"Specs is gonna' skin me alive for this one," he wailed, "I think I just broke one of her new-fangled doohickeys!" Sadly, the boy held up a crushed pile of gears and scrap metal. "I was just strollin' down this hallway, mindin' my own business when I hear this loud crunchin' noise under my foot. I looked down and, I found this!" Tootsie gave another little whimper before February put a hand on his shoulder.

"It'll be fine, like, I swear!" she said encouragingly, "Specs wouldn't hurt a space fly, even if it was butt-ass fugly..."

"But, but-" Tootsie stammered.

"Just chill," February interrupted, holding out a hand to take it, "Specs probably doesn't even realize it's gone. Besides, she wouldn't leave it just lying around if it was important."

"I suppose you're right," Tootsie grinned goofily, handing her the crumbling machine, "I suppose I oughta go find MegaGirl now, I need to ask her somethin' important. I don't remember quite what it is yet, but I'll figure it out..." Without another word, Tootsie lumbered back down the hallway towards the mess hall. The schience officer shrugged and continued to walk down the corridor. She stopped again in front of her room, her hand hovering over the key pad.

"_What was my passcode again?"_ she cocked her head, "_Ohhhh, confused much?"_

Back inside the dorm, Specs had only managed to sift through half the closet and stopped to catch her breath. Nothing was right; everything was either too poofy, too revealing, or altogether too 'February' for her liking. Before she could second guess her plan, she delved right back in, not hearing he very faint beeping of the keypad.

"OMDG." a voice gasped from the door. Specs whipped around to see February gaping at her and felt her face burn bright red.

"I promise you February," Specs stuttered , looking mortified, "This isn't what it looks like!"

"You DO want to go!" the blonde squealed, "I totes knew it!" Specs blinked slowly, her thoughts moving a mile a minute.

"...I suppose I've had a change of opinion," she said, carefully selecting her words, "And I realized that I, I do not own something appropriate to wear for this, occasion. I was looking to see if-"

"Of course you can borrow something!" February beamed, but became serious, "On one condition."

"What might that be?" Specs asked suspiciously.

"You like, have to let me pick out your clothes and do your hair and makeup." The engineer exhaled slowly, relieved that this was all she wanted, and nodded once. "Goodie! This is going to be so much fun! You're going to look gorgeous, like, no one is going to be able to recognize you once I'm done!"

_"__Perfect,"_ Specs thought, _"__That's precisely what I'm trying to achieve..."_

"I have the most perfect dress for you," February gushed, "You're going to love it!"

A few hours later, Specs had been plucked, prodded, and powdered to a level she had never been before. While waiting for February to finish preparing, she fingered the delicate material that made up her dress.

The blonde had outfitted her in something that Specs seemed to have overlooked. It was purple, but unlike the rest of February's closet, it was a deep bluish purple. The dress was a strapless ballgown with gold stitching in the bodice and touches of sparkle through the skirt. While Specs had insisted it was too revealing, the schientist assured her that it was absolutely perfect on her. Along with the dress, February had added sparkling gold ballet flats, after the engineer had rejected a pair of four-inch heels. From what she could tell, the blonde had done something to her hair to make it relax into loose curls. On the table beside Specs, an intricate gold mask lay waiting for her, while the delicate key hung around her neck, glinting in the light.

"I'm ready!" February singsonged, turning to Specs for approval, "What do you think?"

February's dress was a pale pink ballgown, with silver beading at the neckline. Unlike Specs, she was wearing a pair of tall heels, in silver rather than gold. A pair of dangling silver earrings inlaid with pink stones glittered beautifully, while a matching bracelet hung on her wrist. Her blonde hair hung in perfect ringlets around her face, which was shining with excitement. Needless to say, she looked like a Barbie doll come to life.

"I'm sure Bug will be speechless, as usual," Specs assured the blonde.

"He will, won't he?" February giggled, "We probably won't stick around for long, Buggie loves it when we kiss out on the sky deck and, who am I to deny him?" She spritzed herself with perfume and added one last coat of lip gloss. "Come on, we're almost unfashionably late!"

"I'll catch up with you, February," Specs lied, "I believe I left something in my room, but I'll rejoin you shortly."

"Okay," February answered, skipping towards the door, "See you then!" Without another word, the schientist was gone. After waiting at least a minute, Specs grabbed the mask off the table and dashed back to her room as fast as she could in a ballgown. Once she reentered, she opened the chest and located the blonde wig. Silently, she tucked the hair that February had so painstakingly arranged up into the wig, being sure not to leave even one strand out. Specs picked the mask back up and gently placed it on her face, tying the ribbon securely.

Her heart beating faster by the minute, the engineer finally turned to examine her reflection in the mirror. She felt a sharp intake of breath; Specs had pulled it off, the girl in the mirror was unrecognizable. Her dress hugged the curves of her body in a subtle way. The blonde wig hid both Specs' real hair color and her dark eyebrows. She had rosy cheeks, full lips, and long eyelashes that contrasted against the golden mask. The only aspect that remained unchanged was a pair of golden eyes, glinting keenly from behind the mask. With this exception, Specs could passed for February in a heartbeat.

Taking one more minute straighten the wig, the engineer sped out of her room and to the ballroom. However, as she drew closer, her pace began to slow.

_"__Maybe I could just-NO! You are going to march right in there and do something spontaneous and crazy for once in your life. But what if I-SHUT UP!" _Specs argued with her best attempts to block both the voices out, she took one last deep breath, and strolled into the next room, putting on an air of confidence.

Her eyes scanning the room, February was no where to be found.

_"__She and Bug must have left," _she rolled her eyes, _"Probably on the balcony snogging already." _In an attempt to get rid of her nerves, she walked over to the punchbowl. Just as she was reaching for the ladle, another hand reached out and grasped it first.

"Allow me," a soft voice offered. Specs whipped around quickly, coming face to face with a masked boy, only a few inches taller than her, and sandy-blonde hair that was slightly tamed. Looking up at him, she gazed into brilliant blue eyes, eyes that she knew anywhere. It was Krayonder.


	3. Happily Ever After

**A/N: Fair warning, the following conclusion may result in a cavity, due to its ridiculously sweet nature. Read and review, ravenclawdancer4999**

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"Hi," she chirped, trying to make her voice sound more believable.

"Hi," he replied bashfully, handing her a glass of punch. She gingerly accepted it and took a small sip. "Great party tonight, huh?"

"Yes, the crew did a fantastic job of-" Specs started, but quickly corrected herself, "I mean, everything is just so sparkly! I totally love it!" There was a short pause and Specs began to worry she had blown her cover, then Krayonder spoke again.

"Would, would you like to dance?" he said nervously.

"...Sure," she answered shyly as he offered Specs his hand. Krayonder escorted her to the middle of the floor and began to waltz her around with surprising gentleness and skill. Specs eventually chanced a look up into his face, admiring his eyes once more.

"_He may be a bit dim at times, but he certainly is charming and, very handsome..." _Specs smiled, before shaking herself back to reality. _"No Specs, don't let yourself fall for him even harder. Krayonder has a crush on February. He thinks that he is dancing with her, not a nerdy potato-face loser such as yourself. You must let him continue to believe this, in order to preserve his happiness, at least for the evening."_

As much as Specs tried to scold herself, she couldn't help but feel safe in his arms. A period of time passed where neither one had spoken, until Specs plucked up the courage to break the silence.

"I know who you are, but," she asked hesitantly, "Do you know who I am?"

"I have a pretty good idea," he smiled, "But that would ruin the fun of the masquerade, wouldn't it?"

"Yes, I guess it would," Specs giggled in a very un-Specs like manner

"Hey, do you want to go someplace a little quieter?" he asked, gesturing to their loud surroundings, "So we can just talk?" Specs was slightly taken aback by this offer, Krayonder had never struck her as the type to just talk.

"I, I guess so," she answered, "Where should we go?" Inside her head, she was silently begging him not to say the balcony. The charade would be ruined if they came across Bug and the real February, not to mention that Krayonder would be crushed.

"The ship's greenhouse garden is supposed to be really pretty," Krayonder suggested.

"That sounds wonderful," Specs replied as she gave a silent sigh of relief. He offered the crook of his arm and she carefully accepted the gesture. The two strolled through several corridors before they stopped in front of the glass air-locked door. Carefully keying in the password, Krayonder led Specs through the archway of ivy that hung over their head. She took a deep breath and the intoxicating scent of hundreds of flowers filled her nose.

Krayonder had been right; the garden was absolutely stunning. Thousands of small fairy lights adorned perfectly trimmed trees and hedges that were the most brilliant shade of green. A small fountain could be heard bubbling in the distance. Flowers of every color and size lined the cobblestone paths, almost resembling a kaleidoscopic carpet. However, what was most enchanting about the garden was the ceiling made entirely of glass, which allowed its visitors to gaze up at the night sky.

"It's almost like it was pulled out of a storybook," Specs breathed. It would have been a dream come true to be brought here by Krayonder, had he not thought she was someone else entirely. He gently guided her down a particularly secluded path that had trellises draped with flowers in every color and shape. There they found a small, white gazebo bedecked with tiny yellow lights, making it look like it was emitting an almost magical glow.

"If it seems like a fairy tale," Krayonder asked, sitting down beside her, "Does this mean my Cinderella has to leave at midnight?"

"I guess so," Specs admitted, "We can't really, be together, after tonight."

"Why not?"

"Because, because," she tried to think of a lie. Krayonder wasn't listening though, he was slowly leaning in to her bit by bit. Specs began to panic, what should she do? If she kissed him, he would think the real February liked him and then might challenge Bug. Finally, she did the first thing that came to mind.

"Stop!" she exclaimed, pulling away from him quickly.

"Wha-why?" Krayonder puzzled, blinking curiously.

"...I, I'm not who you think I am," she confessed, looking down at her feet, "I'm not February." Then slowly, her fingers undid the ribbon that held her mask and Specs cautiously removed it from her face. Finally finding the courage, she brought her gaze back up to Krayonder and looked at him helplessly. "It's me, Specs." Her eyes fell back to the ground, waiting for him to leave and never speak to her again. "I'm sorry I had to trick you but I, I just didn't want to hurt you." Instead, he gently cupped her chin in his hands, bringing her eyes up to his own.

"Specs, I knew it was you," the boy whispered, "I always knew, from the minute you walked in..."

"But, but how?" Specs stammered, "You couldn't, I mean-"

"No one has eyes like yours," Krayonder smiled, caressing her cheek.

"What do you mean?" she asked, feeling her heart leap inside her chest.

"They're the most perfect shade of gold," he replied, "I just wish you wouldn't hide them so much..." Without another word, Krayonder gently tugged on the blonde wig until Specs' chestnut curls tumbled down.

"What was that for?"

"You're too beautiful to be hiding yourself, Specs."

"...Krayonder, I have something to tell you. I'm, in love with you and, I have been for a long time, I've just been too scared to admit it." Krayonder paused, but then came in even closer to her.

"Specs?"

"Yes?"

"Is it okay if I kiss you now?" Specs looked shocked, but soon gave a nervous nod. Krayonder buried his hand in her thick brown curls and gently kissed the engineer on the lips. Before long, Specs joined in, responding to his passionate kiss with equal intensity.

_"__Maybe Grandma Rose was right," _she smiled, "_Maybe there is something to be said for taking chances..."_


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